While some provinces set the bar too low, others have high hopes for their matrics

A pregnant pupil was not allowed to write a matric exam paper after a senior teacher allegedly told her to leave the school and return with her mother.

The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (Nsfas) has blamed universities for a funding disaster that has left thousands of needy students across South Africa without money for food.

As matric exams kick off tomorrow with English paper 1, it has emerged that 935 pupils from 20 schools in Mpumalanga have been banned from writing after they were found guilty of cheating in last year’s sitting.

The University of South Africa (Unisa) will approach the high court on an urgent basis on Monday to challenge higher education minister Blade Nzimande’s  announcement to place the institution under administration.

The University of South Africa says being put under administration “may only serve to harm the university” and that students should be given the opportunity to focus on their exams without anxiety and disturbance.

More than 3,000 schools in South Africa have reported unusual behaviour among pupils.

Perks, good salaries and well-mannered pupils are among the reasons some South African teachers are choosing to take up jobs overseas.

Former apartheid-era chemical warfare expert Dr Wouter Basson will be giving South Africa’s headmasters tips on how to survive stress.

A company that was registered nine days before bids for a National Student Financial Aid Scheme tender closed, and run by a full-time nurse and an employee at a beverage business, is among 39 firms appointed to run a new student accommodation programme.